3rd grade shares thoughts on Earth day

We began with a box of items that had the potential for some kind of new life or a quick toss into the green bucket. It is really interesting to hear what common items could be reused as according to the class. Each table then was given a blank sheet of poster board and the fun began--everyone's mind when blank as the board then they created signage which made its way to the front hall. They were able to envision old fashioned telephones, flowers, garden boxes, helicopters and a decsion that some things are just "trash."

Sculpting clay dragons is a bit harder than we thought!

Everyone in the class has been begging to try sculpting and was not too excited about doing a simple basket so we tried our hand at dragons. It took 3 weeks of classes to create them but we had to work for it. Next week we paint them. We had quite a few things to learn about the clay process so it was a really great project to do. We had to find the "exactly right" amount of moisture to use to form the shapes and attach one to another. We had to figure out how thick or thin the parts could be and still hold their form. We used toothpicks as supports to keep heads balanced while drying. It was a bit hard to get past the ugly stage for most of the little ones but when we add paint they will really come to life.

Recycling egg cups results in flowers for Kindergarten

I did this project last year with the kindergarten and it is hard to start but once they get going we get bouquets. We used styrofoam egg cups, fun foam pieces, tissue paper, and chenille stems. It is a complicated finger project for most of the kids to push the stem end through the various pieces and they struggle a bit. Although I show them how to punch the egg cups, it is an AH! moment when they do it themselves and it works. I heard all kinds of directions from one student to another as they worked on the project and showed off what was working for them. The flowers are colorful and a real hit.

Wildflowers bloom in 1st grade

 
 This was a popular project everywhere this week. With wildflowers just popping up on the hillsides, we made our own blooming display.
This was a group project where each table created a page for the wall. I drew the flowers and lettered the names so the class could paint. And paint they did! 




They did multi-colored lettering for the names then got into the flower painting. When we completed the flowers they added bees, birds, butterflies and caterpillars. This is always an enjoyable painting project where everyone puts their own touch on the flowers.

2nd grade creates sock critters

This is a 3 week project that pushes their ability to follow directions then allows them to creatively use any of the materials to make the project their own. We had 3 colors of socks available and a supply of colored felt, pom poms, fun foam shapes and yarn to use. Each student had to cut out a mouth and the 2 piece eyes and assemble them gluing them to the socks. They were then offered the other items and directed to create their creature. It was slow for about 10 minutes then magic began to happen as they tried out various items to see if it fit their ideas.

1st grade Lady Liberty monuments

This has proven to be a popular project this year. The kindergarten made them a month ago and the 1st grade did them today. We had more time to talk about the Statue of Liberty, her history, and information about her. 


The project is simple with tp tubes, egg carton sections, straws, tissue paper and green paper crown. This group was much more concerned about being sure she had a face--even hair in some cases.

Painted cookies are a treat for the 3rd grade

To work with colors and textures can be a bit boring but not if the surface is a cookie. I baked sugar cookie rounds and bought windmill cookies. We used sparkle gels and several colored frostings. Each student was told to design the round cookie any way they wanted and to paint the design already on the other. They had to complete both to be able to eat the cookies. It took a lot longer than they expected to complet the project but the eating--very fast.

2nd grade takes on space and completes the display

Take a styrofoam balls, styrofoam rings, a bit of paint and clay and the 2nd grade can create whole galaxies, well at the very least solar systems. The students worked in groups of 6 with each responsible for one or more planets, the sun, and moons. 


By the end of class they had everything ready to hang above their tables. 

A repeat of a previous project--we used paper towel tubes, paper egg cartons, construction paper and a heavy dose of imagination to create space ships to hang around our solar systems. 
Some had hatches that opened, some had fire to drive them, several had passengers, wings and fins were added in a variety of configurations. It is always great to see what they can do with the materials. 


Next week they will hang the solar systems to make the project complete. 

We were able to mount all the planets and their moons around the suns and hang them from the ceiling on foam core boards. The kids drew on and labeled the orbits then attached the balls to dental floss and taped them to the foam boards. Great look in the room!!